When In France
by ravenclawpride
Summary: How does a sun-soaked, relaxing holiday in the French countryside link back to Harry's past and the person he both hates and loves most in his life? D/H, OOC, AU.
1. Un

**Flashbacks are in italics.**

"What about this one?" Hermione asked, holding up a brochure.

"Is it open to Muggles too?" Oliver asked.

Hermione peered at it. "Yep."

"Nope," Ginny vetoed it straight away.

Harry sighed. "You guys. We've been going at this for three hours. Just pick one already!"

"This is important, Harry! We've been planning to go on holiday together for so long, and Oliver _finally_ managed to take leave. We've got to find the perfect place to stay!" Ginny said, looking through a thick travel booklet titled _Holiday in Provence._

Harry picked up a glossy brochure from the pile on the coffee table and flicked through it. A picture of a sun-soaked vineyard caught his eye, and began to read the information.

"Hey, this one sounds pretty good. Château de Marchand. Wizard-run, five-star boarding house in Provence, France, with adjoining vineyard and swimming pool, home-cooked authentic French cuisine, twenty minutes walk from magical town of Sainte-Gilles," Harry read out.

"Wow. Almost too good to be true," Ginny commented, holding out her hand for the brochure.

Harry passed it to her and leaned back into the couch, his mind lingering on the pictures from the brochure- the gorgeous, sprawling château, the sunlight dancing off the trees, the cloudless blue skies.

"I think this is it!" Hermione exclaimed, glancing up from the brochure which Oliver was now reading over her shoulder.

"So, does everyone agree?" Ginny asked.

They all nodded, and Hermione smiled.

"Great! I'll go owl the owner right now!"

Harry entered his small, dark apartment, sighing wearily after a long day of work at the Auror office. His partner was home sick, and he'd had to finish off all the paperwork from their latest case. He flopped down onto the couch and noticed a blinking green light on his Muggle answering machine. Harry reached out and stabbed at the button, and Hermione's excited voice filled the apartment.

"Hey Harry! Good news! I just got a reply from the owner of the château and he has four vacancies for ten days! We can leave the day after tomorrow, is that okay with you? Call me!"

Harry reached for his phone and punched in the number to Hermione and Oliver's apartment.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Mione, I got your message."

"Oh, yes, isn't that good news? So is the date okay?"

"Yeah, it's perfect."

"Yay! Okay, I've arranged everything. The Portkey leaves from my apartment at 11am the day after tomorrow. It'll take us right to the doorstep of the château. Sorry, I've got to go; Oliver wants to know where I put his Puddlemere United socks. I'll see you!"

"Kay. Bye."

Harry forced himself off the couch and into his bedroom, where he pulled off his work robes. Too tired to take a shower, he rummaged around in his closet, looking for pyjamas. He reached deep into a drawer and found something caught in the back of it. He tugged hard at it and a found a worn, grey T-shirt he hadn't seen for years.

Harry lifted the shirt up to his face, breathing in the scent that was already long gone, memories flooding back...

_1998, Grimmauld Place_

_Harry walked down the hallway, pausing to flick his wand at Mrs Black's screaming portrait before entering the kitchen. Draco was sitting at the table, frowning in concentration as he studied some parchment. He was wearing one of Harry's Muggle T-shirts, thrown on in haste this morning when they were shaken awake by Ron, saying something about Kingsley in the kitchen._

"_We need your help, Draco. You have inside information on the Death Eaters, and we need to know how to get into Malfoy Manor. You won't need to be away for long, no more than a week, at Order headquarters," Kingsley had said._

_Draco had looked at Harry, fear mirrored in both their eyes. They had refused to be apart, afraid that if they had to say goodbye, it would be the last time they ever saw each other._

_Draco eventually, reluctantly, agreed._

_Now, Harry leaned against the kitchen doorframe, watching his boyfriend, unsure of how to break the news to him._

_He moved over to stand behind Draco, massaging his thin shoulders beneath the soft grey material._

"_Draco, we need to talk."_

_Harry sat down in one of the chairs. _

"_We're moving. We've stayed in Grimmauld Place far too long, and there are more Death Eaters outside every day. Hermione's already arranged everything. She's remembered this old house in Wales, near where she used to holiday when she was younger. It'll be a perfect hiding place." Harry said._

_Draco sighed. "When are we leaving?"_

_Harry's face fell. "Not we, Draco."_


	2. Deux

_Draco frowned. "What do you mean?"_

"_We're leaving for Wales tomorrow, Hermione, Ron and I," Harry explained._

"_But...I'm leaving for Order headquarters tomorrow...You mean you're not waiting until I get back?" Draco asked, the expression on his face breaking Harry's heart._

"_I'm sorry. Hermione says we need to leave as soon as possible. But you'll join us there! Right after you're finished at the Order. You're one of the Secret Keepers, after all," Harry said._

"_You want me to be a Secret-Keeper?" _

"_Of course. We've decided on two. You're one, and, well, I won't tell you the other person, obviously._

_Are you okay with being one?" Harry asked._

"_Of course I'll do it," Draco said. _

_He sighed and looked down at a piece of parchment, studying it for a few moments. Harry reached out and took one of Draco's hands. _

"_Come on. We'll make the most of our last night together."_

_Later that night, Harry and Draco lay in their bed. Harry traced a finger on Draco's chest, still clothed in his grey shirt. _

"_You know, I didn't like when you called this our last night together," Draco said quietly._

_Harry sat up and looked into Draco's eyes._

"_Draco, we will see each other again. I promise you, we will."_

_Draco smiled. "You better not break that promise."_

Harry, Ginny, Hermione and Oliver landed onto the ground, their luggage tumbling around them.

They straightened up, brushing the dust off their clothes.

"Ugh, I hate Portkey travel," Oliver grumbled.

"Oh my God," Ginny squealed, hurrying over to pick up her suitcase. "My Manolos are in here!"

"Guys, shut up! Will you look at this place?" Hermione said.

They had landed in a wide, sandy driveway framed by tall green trees, right at the doorstep of the château. The sun shone down, making everything seem gold. In the distance, below the cloudless blue sky was the vineyard.

A man appeared in the doorway of the château.

"You must be the Granger party!" he said. "Bienvenue!"

"Yes, we are! I'm Hermione. This is Oliver, Ginny and Harry," Hermione said, doing the introductions.

"It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Damian Marchand, it's lovely to have you here."

Harry saw Ginny eyeing Damian interestedly, and rolled his eyes. It was typical of her to throw herself at any good looking man, but Damian was better-looking than the guys she usually went out was tall and muscular, with a golden tan and stylishly cut wavy, dark brown hair.

Damian led them into the house. They found themselves in the front hall, tastefully decorated in light shades, sunlight pouring through the floor-length windows. He led them up the stairs, pausing by the first door.

"These will be your rooms. One double and two singles, was that right?" Damian asked.

"Yes, thanks," Oliver answered.

They deposited their luggage in their rooms, and then Damian took them on a tour around the château.

"This is the courtyard," Damian said, gesturing to an outdoor area furnished with a large wooden table, with an incredible view of the vineyard. "We serve all meals out here, weather permitting. There will be breakfast, lunch and dinner served every day, but of course they're entirely optional. Most people usually Apparate to Sainte-Gilles for lunch or dinner if they want to."

They walked out into the gardens.

"There are Quidditch goals over the vineyard," Damian said, gesturing to the right. "And the pool's right there."

They sighed in pleasure at the sight of the glittering, blue pool, looking extremely inviting in the hot sun.

"Oh, I feel like jumping right in," Ginny said. "I'll have to take my clothes off first, though."

Harry and Oliver bit their tongues to stop themselves from laughing at Ginny's not-so-subtle flirting.

"You're welcome to use the facilities anytime," Damian said, seemingly oblivious.

"So, how many people are staying in the château right now?" Oliver asked.

"Eleven, including you guys," Damian answered. "You'll meet them at dinner tonight, if you're not planning to go anywhere else."

"No, I think we can do dinner tonight. We'll start exploring the area tomorrow," Hermione said.

"Do you stay in the château too?" Ginny asked, no doubt planning a late-night visit to Damian's bedroom.

"Yes, actually. I have the whole top floor to myself."

"It must be great, living here," Harry commented, staring off in the distance.

Damian looked at him. "It's not too bad."

Harry stood by the window of his room, gazing out at the view. He heard a knock at the door.

"Come in."

Ginny entered, looking like she was heading off to a nightclub in a short dress and heels.

"Gin, is that what you're wearing to dinner? Please go change," Harry groaned.

"What's wrong with my outfit?" Ginny asked, looking down.

"Isn't it a bit too dressy? And obvious? I know you've been eyeing him," Harry said, lifting an eyebrow.

Ginny sat down on the bed and snorted. "Don't tell me you haven't noticed. He's gorgeous."

"I'm not really looking for a boyfriend," Harry answered.

Ginny reached out and placed her hand on his arm.

"Fine, I'll go change. I'll see you downstairs."

The table in the courtyard was already filled when Harry got there. He slid into the seat next to Ginny, opposite Oliver and Hermione. There were golden fairy lights criss-crossing overhead and wrapped around the potted trees. A French song played in the background, barely noticeable over everyone's chatter.

Harry looked around the table, seeing his house-mates for the first time. There was group of young people in their 20s, three boys and two girls, American, from the sound of their accents. An older couple with Irish accents in their 50s were deep in conversation with Hermione.

Damian entered the courtyard, carrying two bottles of wine and setting them down on the table.

"Bonsoir," he greeted them. "Introductions! We have some new guests, Oliver, Hermione, Harry and Ginny," he said, pointing to each of them in turn.

"This is Isabel, Nate, Seth, Mackenzie and Sebastian," Damian said, pointing to the Americans.

"And Maggie and Ryan," he said, pointing to the Irish couple.

"All right, Pierre has prepared a delicious meal, so dig in, everyone!"

Everyone began eating eagerly and conversation flowed easily.

"We're backpacking around the world," Nate told the table.

"So far we've been to Australia, England, Italy and France. France's my favourite- has the best men," Isabel said with a wink.

"I think we're going to be great friends," Ginny laughed.

Harry and Oliver were chatting with Seth about Quidditch.

"We've got to play sometime, over the vineyard. We've had a few games, it's awesome," Seth said enthusiastically.

"Kenz, Seb! We've got a couple of Quidditch fans over here!" Nate called down the table.

"Fantastic! We're sick of playing with each other, it'll be great to have some new players," Mackenzie laughed.

"Aw, sick of me already, babe?" Sebastian joked, kissing her on the cheek.

"What about a game tomorrow?" Seth asked. "Damian's got some brooms and a set of Quidditch balls."

"I think we were planning on visiting Saint-Gilles in the morning, so how about after lunch?" Oliver said.

"Great!" Seth answered, taking a swig of wine.

Harry joined the conversation opposite the table between Hermione, Damian, Maggie and Ryan for awhile. He picked up his glass of wine, taking a sip while glancing down the table.

Nate and Seth had their heads bent, talking quietly together. Harry watched as Nate kissed Seth softly on the lips, Seth smiling at his boyfriend.

_1998, Grimmauld Place_

_Draco stood by the front door, his backpack sitting by his feet. Harry came down the stairs, pulling on a jumper. He reached the bottom, looking at Draco._

"_Here," Draco said, holding out the grey shirt. "So you can keep me with you."_

_Harry smiled. "This was my shirt anyway, but thanks."_

_Shirt in hand, he hugged Draco tightly, pressing his face into Draco's shoulder._

_After a few minutes, Draco pulled away, kissing Harry gently._

"_Remember your promise," he breathed._

"_Always."_


	3. Trois

_1998, Malfoy Manor_

_Draco sat in the middle of the cold, dark room, bound tightly to a chair. The left side of his face was badly bruised and swollen, and cuts were scattered over his face and arms._

"_So, Draco," Voldemort spat out. "Are you going to tell me where your little boyfriend is hiding?"_

_Draco turned his face away and stared at the ground as Voldemort lifted up his wand and aimed it at him. Draco screwed his eyes shut as the Crucio curse hit him._

"_Well? Are you going to tell me now?" Voldemort hissed._

_Draco lifted up his head and stared at him._

"_I would rather die," he whispered hoarsely. _

_Voldemort narrowed his eyes and signalled to the Death Eater standing by the door._

"_I'll be back later. I'll get that information out of you," he shot at Draco, before whirling out the door with the Death Eater at his heels._

_Draco sat in the empty, silent room for a few minutes before he heard a loud pop. A house-elf appeared in front of him._

"_Puck?" Draco said in disbelief, staring at the elf._

"_Master Draco!" it squeaked._

"_What are you doing here?" _

"_Rescuing you, Master Draco," Puck answered as he snapped his fingers, and the ropes binding Draco's wrists and ankles to the chair fell away._

"_I owe you, Puck," Draco said as he stood up._

_Puck seized Draco around the wrist and they disappeared._

Harry and Ginny walked down the stairs, Ginny turning right as they reached the bottom.

"Gin, it's this way," Harry said, pointing left.

"Oh, oops. This place is confusing," she laughed.

They walked to the courtyard, blinded temporarily by the bright sunlight.

"Morning, guys," Harry said as they sat down across Oliver and Hermione.

"Hey! Sleep well?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah, actually. I had a great sleep," Harry said, pouring himself a cup of coffee.

Mackenzie, Sebastian and Isabel entered the courtyard followed by Damian, who was carrying a tray full of pastries.

"Good morning," Mackenzie greeted everyone as she sat down.

"Morning," Ginny answered. "Where's everyone else?"

Sebastian laughed. "Nate and Seth will be up just in time for lunch."

"Maggie and Ryan are visiting Paris today. They left earlier this morning," Damian said. "So, you guys are heading off to Saint-Gilles this morning?"

"Yup. What's the best way to get there?" Hermione asked, reaching for a croissant.

"It's a twenty minute walk, but you can take brooms if you want, or Apparate," Damian answered.

"We can walk. It's a beautiful morning," Hermione said, gazing out at the vineyard.

"Don't wear those stilettos," Oliver warned, pointing at Ginny.

"I wasn't planning to," Ginny replied, rolling her eyes.

They arrived in Saint-Gilles an hour later. The little magical town looked like something right out of a postcard, featuring narrow cobbled streets and buildings with tiny balconies and window boxes frothing with colourful flowers. There were boutiques, a pub, cafés, a small grocery shop as well as some wizarding offices.

They wandered around the shops for a while, chatting with the friendly locals, then had lunch at a small outdoor café.

"Hey, we better head back soon, Harry, we told Seth we'd have a game after lunch," Oliver said, finishing up his coffee.

"Okay. What are you guys going to do?" Harry asked Hermione and Ginny.

"Oh, we're meeting Isabel back at the château. She's taking us to this Muggle town. Apparently there's a really nice spa there," Ginny said.

They headed back to the château, and Oliver and Harry walked down to the Quidditch pitch.

Nate and Seth were already there, and they had pulled out an assortment of broomsticks as well as the set of balls from the little shed.

"Hey guys! Ready for some fun?" Seth called out.

"Bring it on!" Oliver replied.

Oliver and Harry tested out some broomsticks as Nate and Seth argued about the teams. After Oliver and Harry each selected a broom, they spotted Mackenzie and Sebastian strolling down, hand-in-hand.

"Hey," Sebastian greeted everyone, pulling out a small, silver contraption from his pocket, tapping it with his wand and muttering something. Harry and Oliver watched in awe as it enlarged into a full-size broomstick.

"That's not a Retractable Eclipse 9000?" Oliver asked, shocked.

Sebastian grinned. "Yeah. Want to have a go?"

"Hell yes!"

Mackenzie watched them with amusement, and then turned to Nate and Seth.

"Teams sorted out, yet?"

Seth glanced sideways at Nate. "We're getting there."

They eventually figured out the teams- Harry, Seth and Mackenzie on one team, and Nate, Oliver and Sebastian on the other. They released almost all the balls, after deciding to use only one Bludger, and set off.

They played best three out of five games, and eventually Harry's team won after he caught the snitch in record time during the last game. After packing away the equipment, they trudged back up to the house, where they met Damian and the other girls in the courtyard, drinking lemonade.

"Ahh, perfect," Oliver said, grabbing a glass and guzzling it down.

"How was the game?" Damian asked.

"Excellent! We kicked their asses, didn't we, boys?" Mackenzie said, slapping Harry and Seth high-fives. "Harry here is an amazing Seeker."

"Hey, I'm not the only one. You should see Sebastian and Nate with the Quaffle, it's incredible," Harry replied, pouring himself a glass of lemonade. "I have to say, it's nice to play a game that's not in the rain, clouds or fog."

That night they enjoyed another delicious dinner, and afterwards, lounged around the courtyard, playing cards. Damian had disappeared into the house after clearing the dishes.

Isabel reached for the bottle of wine and poured out the last few drops.

"Damn. Do you know where Damian keeps the wine?" she asked.

"I'll go find him and ask," Ginny said, leaving the table and entering the house.

After searching the first and second floors with no sign of Damian, Ginny decided to head up to the third floor.

She saw the first door was slightly open, so after knocking with no response, she pushed it open and entered.

"Hellooo?" she called out, looking around.

The room seemed to be Damian's private study. Most of the space was taken up by a huge mahogany desk in the middle of the room, and the walls were lined with bookshelves.

Ginny circled the desk, glancing at the books on the shelves and found herself on the other side of the desk.

She spotted a silver framed photo on the desk and leaned in closer to look at it, her mouth falling open in shock.


	4. Quatre

_1998, Malfoy Manor_

_Voldemort smiled slowly, and the boy in the chair looked away in fear._

"_I understand that you are a Secret-Keeper for Harry Potter's hiding place," Voldemort said softly._

"_Why don't you tell me where it is, and I won't hurt you."_

"_I'll never tell you!" he gasped out as the Death Eater behind him cast a Crucio curse._

"_Again!" Voldemort snarled at the Death Eater, who raised his wand at the boy a second time._

"_He's in Wales!" the boy screamed out. "In a deserted house in the hills in the north of Wales!"_

"_There," Voldermort smiled in triumph. "That wasn't so hard, was it?"_

_He raised his wand and aimed it carefully. The room flashed with a bright green light, and Colin Creevey slumped over, dead._

Ginny gasped loudly as she recognised the boy in the photo. It was none other than Draco Malfoy, wearing a familiar smirk, and standing side by side with his parents.

"Oh my god," Ginny whispered, picking up the frame and peering closer at it.

"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god,"she repeated.

She glanced around quickly, still clutching the frame.

Suddenly, she heard footsteps outside.

"Fuck," she squeaked, and hurriedly placed the frame back on the desk, then exited the study, making sure to leave the door slightly open.

That night, Ginny lay in bed, thinking about the photo. She glanced at her watch on the bedside table. 2.30 am. She got out of bed quietly and tiptoed out to the hall, pausing by Harry's room door.

She crept closer and heard him snoring, so she moved on to Hermione and Oliver's room.

She knocked softly on their door.

"Mione? Oliver?" she hissed. "You better not be having sex, 'cos I'm coming in!"

She entered the room, and saw in the dark, Oliver sitting up in bed, rubbing his eyes.

"Gin, what the fuck? It's the middle of the night!"

"Shhh! Be quiet! And wake Hermione up!" Ginny whispered, casting locking and silencing charms around the room and on the door.

"What is it?" Hermione mumbled.

Ginny went over and sat down on the bed.

"Okay, I found something weird tonight. You know just now, when I went to look for Damian? I was up on the top floor, and the first door I saw was open, so I went in. And guess what I saw on the desk?!" Ginny said.

"A pair of Manolos?" Oliver asked sarcastically.

"No. It was a framed photo. Of Lucius, Narcissa and Draco Malfoy."

"What? What would that be doing there?" Hermione asked, frowning.

"I don't know!!"

"Are you sure, Gin? Maybe it was someone else," Oliver said.

"No. It's definitely Draco Malfoy, aged about thirteen. Seriously! I mean, no one else can smirk like that!" Ginny said.

"I don't get it. What would a picture of the Malfoys be doing in Damian's study?" Hermione asked.

She got out of bed and started pacing.

"Maybe they're related or something? Were there any other pictures?" Oliver asked.

"No, just the one."

Ginny chewed on her nail, thinking hard.

"Draco Malfoy. Damian Marchand. Same initials-D.M," Ginny said slowly. "I know it doesn't mean anything, but, I don't know, it's weird."

"D.M, D.M," Hermione muttered. "It's too much of a coincidence."

She sat down on the bed next to Ginny. "Let me do some research first, and we'll see what I can find."

_1998, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

_Harry awoke, and looked around at his surroundings. It was hard to tell in the dark, but it seemed like he was lying on the floor in the Potions classroom at Hogwarts._

_He shook his head, frowning in confusion._

_The last thing he remembered was Voldemort blasting the door of the house open in Wales, and now he was here._

_Harry almost felt like laughing. Voldemort's brought me to Hogwarts to kill me, he thought. Maybe he thought it would be ironic for me to die where I felt most at home._

_Harry suddenly remembered something, and reached under his shirt, sighing in relief when he felt the wand holster strapped across his chest, hidden by a Disguise charm that Hermione had cleverly thought of._

_The door flew open suddenly, and a Death Eater Harry didn't recognise entered. He pulled Harry up roughly and cast a Body-check charm over his body. Frowning, the Death Eater lifted up the corner of Harry's shirt using the tip of his wand, and smirked when he spotted the blood-soaked bandage wrapped around Harry's chest._

_Harry closed his eyes and muttered thanks to Hermione._

_The Death Eater prodded his wand into Harry's back and led him out of the room and to the Great Hall. _

_Voldemort was there, waiting, along with a few of Death Eaters. Harry spotted Hermione and Ron, bound to the wall magically._

"_Harry!" Hermione yelled, visibly relieved to see him. _

_Voldemort's red eyes glinted as Harry was led into the middle of the hall. _

"_At last. Harry Potter..." Voldemort hissed. "No one to save you now, Potter. Your friends are captured, your boyfriend...."_

_Voldemort spat out the last word, and smiled when Harry's head snapped up at the mention of Draco._

"_You might be interested to know that it was the Malfoy boy that disclosed your whereabouts," Voldemort whispered._

"_You're lying," Harry said simply._

"_I'm sorry to tell you that I am not. Don't you know, Potter? Draco never left my side. He came running back as soon as he knew where you were heading to."_

_Voldemort laughed softly, and the Death Eaters began muttering amongst themselves ._

_Harry took advantage of their distraction and quickly reached under his shirt, grabbing the hidden wand._

"Hypothetically, what if Damian is really Draco?" Ginny whispered. "What will we do?"

"He betrayed all of us during the war. He used Harry. We'll beat the shit out of him, of course," Oliver said.

"Oliver!" Hermione reprimanded.

There was silence for a while as they were lost in their thoughts.

Hermione sighed. "I really don't know."

"_Avada Kedavra!"_

"_Expelliarmus!"_

_And then Voldemort was dead, killed by his own rebounding curse. _

_Harry collapsed to the floor, the tears began to flow and sobs shook him. He gave himself up to them, and wept for the betrayal of the only person he ever truly loved._


	5. Cinq

The next morning, Hermione woke up at the crack of dawn and barged into Ginny's room, heading straight for the windows and throwing them open. The bright sunlight flooded the room and Ginny groaned and rolled over in bed.

"Wake up, wake up!" Hermione snapped, pulling the covers off Ginny.

"Fuck off," Ginny murmured into her pillow.

"Don't make me cast an Aguamenti on your face!" Hermione warned.

Ginny sighed. "What do you want?"

"Do you want to solve the whole Damian/Draco/D.M thing?" Hermione asked.

Ginny nodded.

"Then we're going to Paris."

Ginny beamed. "To shop?"

"No!! To go to the French Ministry of Magic. I can use my contacts to check the records and get some information," Hermione explained.

"Although, I'm sure we'll have some time to shop," she added as an afterthought.

Ginny leaped out of bed. "Now you're talking!"

Harry entered the courtyard for breakfast and sat down across Oliver.

"Where are the girls?" he asked.

"They headed off to Paris to go shopping," Oliver said with his mouth full of toast.

"Oh, why didn't they tell me?" Harry asked.

"They decided really late last night and wanted to get a head start, so they left early."

All Hermione had to do was flash some identification at the receptionist at the Ministry, and they were admitted straight in.

"My job has a lot of perks," Hermione said to Ginny.

"God, look at this place. Everything's so chic, even the men are wearing designer robes," Ginny whispered, looking around.

They spent an hour in the Ministry, where Hermione checked through some records. When she had finished, they found a small café where Hermione wrote a few letters to colleagues back in England for more information, while Ginny flirted with the cute waiter.

"Okay! I've done all I can, now we just have to wait for the replies," Hermione said as she sent off the last owl.

"So, we're done?" Ginny asked. "Let's go shopping!"

Hermione and Ginny arrived back at the château after dinner, weighed down by a dozen shopping bags. Ginny was unpacking her shopping in her room when Hermione and Oliver entered.

"We've got a reply!" Hermione said, waving a piece of parchment.

"Oooh, what does it say?"

"Wait, what's Harry doing? We've got to make sure he won't come in," Hermione said.

"Don't worry, Harry and Nate are involved in a heated discussion about Seeker techniques," Oliver said.

"Okay, good. Quick, Hermione, what have you found out?" Ginny asked eagerly.

Hermione cleared her throat in a business-like manner.

"All right. I checked the magical properties listings in the Ministry, as well as Damian's records, and cross checked with Draco Malfoy's records in England. Draco is listed as Missing, since 1998.

Damian seems pretty normal. Born in France, lived here his whole life, set up this boarding house business four years ago."

"Well, nothing interesting there," Oliver commented.

"What was the last-seen date on Draco's file?" Ginny asked.

"The day he was supposed to have left for Order Headquarters," Hermione said. "Also the last time Harry, Ron and I saw him."

"So, we're no closer to finding out anything?" Oliver said.

"Actually, there is something interesting. This château actually belongs to the Malfoys. Now that Lucius and Narcissa are dead, Draco would have inherited this property," Hermione said.

"Well, Damian could have bought it off them," Oliver said.

"Here comes the interesting part. Are you ready for it? This property is bonded to the Malfoy family. It's not allowed to leave the Malfoy bloodline or something like that...some kind of ancient magic," Hermione said.

"So Damian is part of the Malfoy family?" Oliver asked.

"Or...Damian_ is_ Draco!" Ginny exclaimed.

Hermione nodded smugly. "Exactly."

Oliver frowned. "Wait, I don't get it."  
"It all adds up!" Ginny said excitedly. "After Draco betrayed us and all that, he ran away to France, got a new identity and set up camp in his old family property. The picture of the Malfoys fits in, too."

"He must be wearing glamours and voice charms and all that. He really must be more careful, though, leaving his door open for the whole world to see his picture," Hermione frowned.

"Who cares!" Oliver exclaimed, standing up. "I'm gonna go find Malfoy and give him a taste of his own medicine. Let's see how he likes being betrayed."

Hermione grabbed Oliver's wrist and pulled him back down onto the bed.

"Oliver, no! That's not right, we should..." Hermione trailed off. "What _should_ we do?"

"Do you think we should tell Harry?" Ginny asked.

"Absolutely not. It took Harry so long to get over the fact that he was betrayed. By the love of his life. We can't throw him back into depression," Hermione said.

"Harry hasn't had a serious boyfriend in nine years. Like you said, Draco was the love of his life, and maybe they're meant to be together," Ginny replied.

"Gin, you've been reading too many romance novels. I don't think Harry would want to be with Malfoy after all he's done," Oliver said.

"I think we should go talk to Damian- I mean Draco, whatever, and see what he has to say," Hermione said.

"Oh, yeah, that'll go down well. As if we could just waltz up to him and go, 'Excuse me, but we think that you might be our best friend's long-lost estranged boyfriend who betrayed all of us during the war nine years ago and why don't you take off all your glamours and reveal you are really Draco Malfoy and perhaps you could explain why you betrayed us?'" Ginny said.

Hermione blinked. "Umm...yeah, something like that. Maybe a little more subtle though."

"Wait, we're not even sure Damian is Malfoy," Oliver said.

"Well, we'll just Obliviate him if he's not Draco," Hermione said.

Ginny thought for a while, then nodded with a smile. "Sounds good."


	6. Six

The next morning , Oliver crept into Harry's room while he was still sleeping, and cast a Drowsiness spell on him. He exited quietly and met the girls back in Ginny's room.

"Okay, the spell should buy us a couple of hours. Let's go," he said.

They headed up to the third floor and reached Damian's study. Ginny stuck out her hand to knock and hesitated. Hermione nodded encouragingly, so she knocked softly.

"Who is it?" Damian's voice floated out.

"Um...it's Ginny! Can I come in?"

"One second!"

They waited for a quarter of a minute before the door flew open and Damian appeared, looking faintly confused when he saw Oliver and Hermione with Ginny.

Hermione flashed him her best smile. "Can we speak with you?"

He frowned and nodded. "Sure, come in."

They entered the study, all three of them noticing there was no framed picture to be found on the desk.

"What is this about?" Damian asked, sitting back down on his chair.

"We're sorry," Hermione said.

"For what?"

"This," Oliver said, and cast a spell, binding Damian to his chair.

"What the hell is going on- ,"

Ginny leaned down and stared Damian straight in the eyes.

"Draco Malfoy?" she asked.

"Gin, what? This wasn't part of the plan! Mione, where's the Veritaserum?" Oliver exclaimed.

"That's only for extreme circumstances, Oliver! Now, shut up," Hermione said.

They looked back at Damian, who was staring back at Ginny.

There was silence for a few minutes. Finally, Damian relaxed.

"You got me," he said with a small smile.

Ginny straightened up and blinked. "That was easy."

"Now, will you let me go, so I can explain?" Draco said.

Oliver snorted. "Not a chance. You can do all your explaining from the chair and be thankful I'm not doing anything more painful to you."

"At least let me remove the glamours and charms," Draco said.

"I knew it!" Hermione said triumphantly.

"Hermione'll remove them," Ginny said.

Hermione pointed the wand at Draco's face and murmured a complicated incantation.

They watched in shock as Damian's face shimmered slightly and disappeared, revealing Draco Malfoy, nine years older.

Ginny stepped back slightly. "Oh my god, I think I'm in slight shock. It's really him."

"Will you tell me how you found out?" Draco asked, in his normal voice.

"You have to be more careful locking your door next time. Ginny found the picture of your family, long story short, involving a lot of research and a little guessing and imagination, we figured it out," Hermione said.

"Okay, okay! Enough with the small talk! When can I hex this bastard for betraying us?" Oliver snarled, crossing his arms.

Draco's eyes widened. "Betraying you? I never betrayed you!"

"Oh, don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about! You were a bloody little double agent and went telling You-Know-Who Harry's hide-out!" Oliver exclaimed, waving his wand in Draco's face.

"I did no such thing! Will you just let me explain and stop waving that in my face!" Draco said.

He turned to look at Ginny and Hermione. "Please, let me explain everything. I'll even take that Veritaserum, so you know everything I say is true."

Hermione and Ginny looked at each other and nodded. Hermione reached into her pocket and pulled out the small vial.

"You don't even have to untie me. Just pour it into my mouth," Draco said.

Hermione did so, and he began to talk.

"I don't know how you got the idea that I betrayed you, but here's my side of the story. The day Kingsley came to take me to Order headquarters from Grimmauld Place, we were intercepted by Death Eaters. They killed Kingsley and took me to Malfoy Manor, where Voldemort was," Draco said.

"Oh! We thought _you_ killed Kingsley!" Ginny cut in.

"Gin, let him talk!"

"Sorry."

"Anyway, Voldemort tortured me, trying to get me to spill Harry's hide-out. Somehow he found out I was a Secret-Keeper. I refused to say anything, and he got frustrated and left the room in a huff. Then my old house-elf, Puck, appeared and saved me, Apparating me out. We ended up here, in this château. I didn't know about it, but Puck did, and told me it belonged to my family. I decided it was safe enough to hide out, so we stayed here. I changed my identity, wore a glamour and voice charms, and have been here ever since. I set up this business a few years ago. Then, last week, I got an owl from Hermione Granger, of all people, and almost died when she booked a room for a Harry Potter. I have to admit, I took a Calming Draught a few seconds before you guys arrived here."

There was silence while the three took in the information.

Draco finally spoke up. "What made you think I betrayed you?"

Oliver and Ginny both looked at Hermione, who took a deep breath.

"Just before Voldemort died, Voldemort told Harry that you were on his side all along, and that you used Harry only to get information from him," Hermione said.

"Harry thinks that?" Draco asked sadly. "You all believed Voldemort."

"Well, of course we did! It all made sense...you never showed up at Wales, then a week later, Voldemort comes knocking down the bloody door and takes us to Hogwarts to kill us! What were we supposed to think? Thank god Harry had a hidden wand and, well, anyway, he defeated Voldemort in the end," Hermione said.

"There was a second secret keeper...who was it?" Draco asked.

"Colin Creevey," Hermione said.

"He must have been the one, then," Draco said.

Hermione nodded. "I guess so."

Ginny spoke up. "Wait a minute. If you didn't betray Harry, then why didn't you return to find him after the war was over?"

Draco looked down and sighed. "I don't know. I always wanted to, but I convinced myself it was better for us to be apart. It was never really smooth-sailing for us, you know? So, I made myself believe Harry was happy without me, and that I was happy without him."

"But you're not," Oliver said.

Draco shook his head. "I'll never be happy without him."

"And he'll never be happy without you. He was depressed for about four years after the war. At one point, it was so bad that...I don't want to go into it," Ginny said.

"Well, you're here now, Harry's here, and you both love each other," Hermione said, gazing in the distance, like she always did when she was coming up with plans.

Draco smiled, recognising her expression.

"What do you propose?"

Hermione walked over, placing a hand on Draco's shoulder and looking him in the eyes.

"You are so lucky we decided not to holiday in Italy."


	7. Sept

Harry walked down the stairs slowly, heading for the courtyard and wondering why the hell he had felt so tired all day.

He hadn't seen Oliver, Ginny, Hermione or even Damian the whole day, but he didn't mind as all he wanted to do was curl up in bed and sleep.

Harry walked into the courtyard and blinked, looking around in confusion.

There was no one in sight and every possible surface was covered in candles.

"What the hell..." he murmured.

Harry moved nearer to the table and spotted a small photograph lying on it. He picked it up and stared at it in disbelief.

_1998, The Burrow_

_Harry and Draco sat at a table in the marquee, watching the newly-married Bill and Fleur whirl around the dance floor._

_Draco looked at Harry. "Want to dance?" _

"_Sure."_

_Draco led Harry up to the dance floor, where a slow song was playing._

_Suddenly Colin Creevey popped up, camera in hand. _

"_Hey, can I get a picture?" Colin asked._

"_Why not," Draco said, and wrapped his arms around Harry. They both smiled as the camera flashed._

Harry watched himself and Draco smiling in the photo, arms tight around each other.

_1998, Grimmauld Place_

"_I have something for you," Harry said, reaching into his rucksack and pulling out two photos, handing them to Draco._

"_Hey, the photos Creevey took at the wedding," Draco said._

"_Yeah, Kingsley gave them to me when he was here today. They came with a note from Colin saying he developed two copies for us."_

"_Creevey's at headquarters?"_

"_Yeah. I guess you'll see him tomorrow. Make sure to say thank you to him."_

"_If I remember," Draco murmured, staring at the photos._

_Harry reached out and took one of the photos, casting a spell on it, placing his magical signature on the photo. _

"_Now you do the same on the other one, and we'll keep each others," Harry said._

_Draco rolled his eyes. "You and your crazy sentimental ideas," he said, but he pulled out his wand and did it anyway._

_They swapped photos and Harry held his, feeling Draco's magical signature flowing through it strongly._

"_So you won't forget me when we're apart," Harry said._

"_I'll never forget you," Draco murmured, pulling Harry in for a kiss._

Harry now reached into his pocket and took out his wallet, carefully pulling out his copy of the photo. It had faded slightly and was fraying around the ages, but the magical signature flowing through it was as strong as ever. He held the photos side by side, feeling his own magical signature on the other copy. It was definitely not a duplicate, but what the hell was it doing here?

Harry was thinking so hard he didn't hear the footsteps coming up behind him.

"Do you remember your promise?" a soft voice behind Harry asked.

Harry froze.

It was a voice he had not heard for nine years, but had heard in his dreams every night.

Harry turned around slowly, and came face to face with Damian.

"Damian. What-I thought I heard..."

Harry watched with wide eyes as Damian lifted his wand to his face and murmured a spell.

His face shimmered and was replaced by another.

Damian's dark brown hair faded to a bright white-blonde, his tan face changing to a familiar pale, the dark brown eyes replaced by grey ones.

"It's me, Harry," Draco whispered.

Harry stared at Draco for several long moments, shock and hurt flickering across his face. Draco held his breath and waited.

Harry took a step towards Draco and brought his fist up, landing it on the side of Draco's jaw, before leaving the courtyard.

The two photos fluttered to the floor, and Draco bent down to pick them up, a single tear falling onto Harry's black and white smiling face.


	8. Huit

Harry sprinted up the stairs and into his room, slamming the door shut, and then casting a locking charm on it. He pulled open the drawers in the closet roughly and seized his clothes, dumping them into his suitcase.

He slammed down the lid on his suitcase and grabbing it, left the room and exited the château.

He would owl his friends from England.

Harry Apparated into Saint-Gilles and headed for the wizarding travel office. Thankfully it was still open. He threw open the door and glared at the pretty witch sitting at the desk.

"I need a Portkey to England immediately," Harry said.

She smiled pleasantly. "Let me see what I can do," she answered, heading into a back room.

She emerged after a few minutes with a wooden disk in hand, placing it on the desk in front of Harry.

"It will leave in twenty minutes," she said.

Harry nodded curtly, and managed a "Thank you."

He dragged his suitcase over to a small couch in the corner and sat down to wait. After glancing at his watch for the millionth time and shooting another impatient glance at the Portkey, the receptionist looked up.

"Anytime now," she said.

Harry stood up and made sure he had a firm grip on his suitcase, waiting for the blue glow.

The receptionist smiled. "Have a pleasant journey."

The wooden disk glowed blue and Harry reached out to touch it, but not before a pale hand appeared and seized his wrist.

Harry whirled around as the disk disappeared in a flash.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?!" Harry snarled, snatching his wrist out of Draco's grip.

Draco pushed an envelope onto Harry's chest and left the office without saying a word.

Harry stood in the office for a few minutes, suitcase in one hand, envelope in the other.

Finally he pushed open the door of the office and walked outside. He found a bench under a tree in the middle of the town, and sat down.

Harry looked down at the envelope in his hand and frowned when he saw Hermione's unmistakably neat handwriting on the front.

_Harry- please trust me and read this. _

Harry sighed and ripped open the envelope after running some cursory checks on it.

He pulled out a single piece of paper and two photographs fell out along with it. Harry glanced at the familiar photos for a second before reading the letter.

_Dear Harry,_

_I know what you must think of me and you have every right to be mad for what I did. But please believe me when I say I did not betray you. The only thing I did wrong was to not return to find you after the war all these years. _

_It was only after Hermione, Oliver and Ginny discovered my identity that we managed to hear both sides of the story and figure what happened during the war._

_It was not me who disclosed the location of the hide-out to Voldemort. And I was never a 'double agent', as Oliver puts it. _

_Voldemort did torture me for information, but I didn't say anything. I was rescued in time by my house-elf. Voldemort must have gotten the information from your second Secret-Keeper, Colin Creevey._

_I should have found you after the war, but I was scared. There was always something keeping us apart and I was afraid if we were together, something worse would happen to us. _

_I tried to convince myself I was happy without you, but I'm not. _

_Nine years apart from you is nine years too long._

_If you think you can forgive me, meet me back at the château. I'll be waiting at the vineyard._

_I'll love you always._

_Draco._

Harry lowered the letter and stared in the distance. The sun was setting- the sky streaked with rosy pink and purples, the first stars emerging.

He got up from the bench and walked off.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Harry appeared in the driveway of the château. Night had fallen a long time ago, and the house was pitch black. He turned and gazed in the distance, a glimmer of light catching his eye. He turned the corner to the other side of the house and found himself staring at a sea of candles and fairy lights that covered the vineyard.

Draco stood in the middle of the vineyard, staring up at the sky. He glanced down at his watch. Midnight. Harry was not coming. He sighed and began to turn to walk back to the house when he felt a pair of warm arms wrap around him.

"I would never forget my promise," a voice whispered in his ear.

Draco turned and stared into Harry's bright green eyes.

Harry brought his hand up and placed it gently on the side of Draco's face where he had previously punched him. He pulled Draco towards him and kissed him softly.

Draco wrapped his arm around Harry's waist tightly and kissed him back fiercely, never wanting to let go.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hermione was walking down the corridor of the second floor, passing by Harry's room, when she bumped into Seth.

"Hey! Seen Damian?" he asked.

"I was just looking for Harry, actually-,"

She was cut off by the sound of murmured voices, followed by a low moan drifting from Harry's room.

Hermione smiled knowingly.

Seth lifted an eyebrow.

"_What_ is going on in there?" he asked, glancing sideways at Harry's door.

Hermione laughed. "It's a _very_ long story."

"I have time."

Hermione led Seth to the stairs. "Why don't we find the others and go get a drink at the pub in town?"

Seth grinned. "Sounds good! Maybe you can tell us the story. Just as long as it has a happy ending."

Hermione smiled quietly to herself. "Oh, trust me. It does."

**Hope you enjoyed! Thank you to everyone who read/reviewed. Stay tuned- there might be an epilogue in the works.**


	9. Le Epilogue

Harry entered the lobby of his apartment, pulling his mobile phone out of his pocket as it started to ring.

"Hello?" he answered as he stabbed at the lift button.

"Hey Harry! What's new?" Hermione's voice chirped.

"Same old, what about you?" Harry answered as the lift 'dinged!' and the doors slid open.

"Hopefully having dinner with you and Draco tomorrow night. You guys can help me figure out the place settings for the wedding. All the wedding stuff is driving me crazy! I can't wait 'til it's over."

Harry laughed as the lift started to move up.

"Well, as much as I would love to help you figure out which table to place Oliver's senile aunt at, Draco and I are leaving for France in about- he glanced as his watch- fifteen minutes," Harry said.

"Oh, right. I forgot- it's Friday, isn't it? Okay, what about dinner on Monday night?" Hermione asked.

"We can do better than that. Why don't you come down to the château this weekend? Bring Oliver," Harry said. "You remember Seth and Nate and the rest of the guys? They're coming down to France to visit. Join us!"

Hermione laughed. "I'm seriously tempted. I'll talk to Oliver. Sorry, Harry, I have to go. Bring me back some wine!"

"I brought you back three bottles last weekend!"

"Yeah, well, I need some more. Okay, I might see you at the château, then. I'll be in touch."

"Bye!"

Harry stepped out of the lift and pulled out his keys, unlocking the door, grinning as he spotted Draco sitting at the dining table.

He walked over draped his arms over Draco's shoulders, kissing his shoulder and working his way up his neck.

"Hey, you're home," Draco said.

"Mmm...what are you doing?" Harry murmured, nibbling on Draco's ear.

"Just writing a thank-you note to your boss for letting you take a month off work."

"Why am I taking a month off work?"

"Because we need a holiday. We have a huge château in France and we're not getting enough use out of it," Draco replied, sealing the note and sending it off with their owl.

Harry laughed. "We already spend every weekend there."

"Well, now we're spending a whole month there. I just got a hot tub installed in our bathroom," Draco said, running his hand over Harry's back and smiling suggestively.

"You've convinced me. So my boss said it was okay?"

"Yup. It's all sorted. You all packed? The Portkey leaves soon."

"Yeah, I'm all done. Half my stuff is there anyway."

Draco bit his lip and sat down on the edge of the dining table. "Well...what do you think about moving _all_ your stuff there?"

Harry raised his eyebrows.

"You mean moving to France permanently?"

"Yeah. I know, being an Auror is practically mandatory Gryffindor behaviour and all that...but the wine business is doing so well...and we can start up the boarding house business again," Draco said.

"That sounds...surprisingly tempting," Harry said.

"Really?" Draco grinned.

Harry pulled him up. "We'll talk about it. Come on, Portkey's leaving."

They grabbed their luggage as the Portkey on the dining table glowed blue.

Harry glanced back at the photo frame in the living room, where the ten-years-younger Harry and Draco smiled back at him.

Harry turned back to press a kiss to Draco's lips as the Portkey whisked them away to their happy ending.


End file.
